Have you got an umbrella?
by LevitatingPiez
Summary: Bunnie's hometown is certainly a peaceful place, but when there are warnings of floods, she is forced to shift out of her comfortable life style and see how big the world truly is.
1. Chapter 1

Bunnie lounged on her sofa, the tip of her claw rapping against her mug. Today was raining, as usual. Well, at least the mayor was pleased. She _always _seemed to be pleased when it came to rain or storms. Then again, there was something relaxing about the rhythm of water-droplets against the window, or the rumble of thunder crashing through the sky, yet it would be nice to see a sunny day more often.

Bunnie brought the cup to her lips, flicking through a magazine lazily, her eyes scrolling over the page, not really absorbing the text. Her mind was on other things. She was meant to be peppy, what was with the mope? Suddenly, the phone rang, and he reached out a paw to grab it.

"Hi! Who's there, tee-hee?" she inquired, cocking her head to the side even though there was no one to see it.

"Hello, Bunnie!" It was the mayor, her voice shining like a sunbeam. Something that the small rabbit did not see often.

"Oh! Mayor Lillian! It's fantastic to hear from you again, it's been a while!" Bunnie instantly perked up, her ears straightening.

"I'm sorry to say it's not good news," the mayor apologised. "Come to the town hall. I and Isabelle have an announcement to make." With that, there was a click and then a deafening silence. Bunnie frowned. Well, that was _her _day ruined. What had happened to painting her claws and eating chocolate?

Reluctantly, she pulled on her rain-boots, grabbed her umbrella and trudged over to the town hall, carefully avoiding her flower patch. By the time she had reached the town hall, it was flooded with residents, and her boots were rimmed with thick, brown mud. Bunnie's demeanour became even stormier as a consequence.

Lillian cleared her throat, adjusting the hood of her polka-dotted coat and brought a silence over the bubbling crowd of animals. It was strange to Bunnie really. The mayor wasn't an animal of any sort she'd ever come across, but at least she was as sweet as her mama's cookies.

"We have been warned of floods. There has been a strange turn in the pattern of weather, and since we're so close to the coast, there is a good chance that our houses could be destroyed."

The shocked silence lingered for a few seconds. Then, pandemonium struck. There were cries of anger and distraught. Mayor Lillian was becoming panicked, her eyes widening and watering. She obviously hated seeing her townsfolk like this.

"But I have nowhere to go!" Kidd moaned, followed by choruses of agreement.

"If everyone clams down, I'm sure we can figure this out," the mayor struggle to shout, sounding forced. Bunnie's ears were aching because of the dumb, blind ruckus everyone was making. Despite her peppy nature, an anger she'd never experienced was driving her to distraction.

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" the previously cheerful rabbit screamed, a vein throbbing in her forehead. The sound of rustling clothes and fur sounded as the rest of the crowd turned and stared at her in shock, unused to hearing such a harsh, loud noise from her. Bunnie's cheeks glowed red. She exhaled sharply.

"I know this is a big change," she mumbled bashfully, regretting her yelling "but it's not something we have a choice over. So we may as well buck up and make the best out of the situation."

Everyone seemed to calm down. True, it wasn't a desirable thing to think about, but the citizens were going to HAVE to change their attitudes and find a new place to live. Lillian, realizing that the kerfuffle had calmed, continued with her speech.

"It would be wise to gather up your possessions and go to a relative's house, perhaps, or find a hotel to lodge in. Please inform me once you have found a safe and secure place.

"Isabelle will be handing out my telephone number at the train station. Gather back here as soon as you have finished."

The animals scattered, dashing home as a more rain clouds rumbled on the horizon. Bunnie shook her head in disbelief, and began stumbling back to her house like a zombie. Once inside, something inside her snapped, and she began thrusting items of clothing into a large suitcase ferociously. She threw in a few photos, some precious things and stomped out of the house, leaving a trail of muddy footsteps behind her. Bunnie then decided to look at the beach one last time. She sighed and hopped down the familiar path, her paws stumping across the sand. Her eyes stung with tears as she stared out over the sea. Slowly, it came to the animal's attention that there was a slumped figure, resting on the shore line. Quickly, she dashed over, peering down onto the limp stranger. It was an albatross, squawking softly in its sleep.

"Wake up!" Bunnie hollered at him, frowning. It was Gulliver. Of course it was Gulliver.

"Hm?" he yawned, blinking drowsily and giving a lazy smile.

"Gulliver, get up. Now. We don't have time to discuss where you're going next, we need to get up and GO," Bunnie demanded, wrenching him up from the ground with a sharp tug. Gulliver screeched indignantly.

"You could have just said so! Fine, I'm coming. This sounds important," the bedraggled bird grumbled, flicking specks of sand off his top with his wing. Droplets of water dripped off his feathers and soaked his clothes. Bunnie wondered how he had survived sailing in a storm this violent.

In no time, the duo was seated in the train, huffing from the running they had had to do in order to reach it before its departure.

The train began to chug away from the station, leaving the grey, barren little town behind. A wave of sadness overcame Bunnie. Tears formed in the corners of her black, glossy eyes. She felt a wing rub her back comfortingly, and when she turned, a large, carrot-coloured beak was smiling at her.

"Tell me all about it."


	2. Chapter 2

Bunnie sighed tiredly, her eyesight falling towards the floor. The tears were still prickling in her eyelids, the world wavering uncertainly beneath her paws. She pulled her legs up beneath her soggy, crumpled dress and started whispering to Gulliver about the misfortunes that had occurred that day.

Gulliver nodded sympathetically, patting her on the back encouragingly. Once Bunnie had finished, she straightened her back to see her human friend, Robin, standing directly beside her with shiny, innocent eyes. Somehow she seemed to have managed to avoid the rain, her candy-pink hair bone-dry and glossy.

"Hello, Bunnie," she uttered softly, her voice flowing like honey. Robin stooped to her friend's level, her demeanour calm and emotionless. "Mayor Lillian is giving out cups of hot chocolate. Would you like some?"

Bunnie noticed the crowded tray of steaming mugs balanced in Robin's arms. Each of them had radiating warmth and steam spiralling out of the top. It would certainly be nice to take a fresh, hot drink…

"Ah… Yes please, tee-hee!" Bunnie took a cup from Robin and swallowed as much of the sweet, warm liquid as she could. The quiet, tranquil girl seemed satisfied and moved on, passing out drinks to the rest of the shivering, shuddering carriage. There were various towns passing by, the house and trees just rapid blurs of colour. Absentmindedly, Bunnie wondered if it would be worth visiting one of the towns to look around. If they had someone like Nook around, maybe he could offer Bunnie a house. Well, the tanukichi was known for his occasional bursts of unusual generosity.

The train came to an abrupt halt, the breaks screeching.

"Ee ee! We're now arriving at 'Oakville!'" Porter announced over the speakers. Frita bustled off of the train, glancing back at everyone. Her beady black eyes were glistening, though she fought away the stinging sensation, gave her farewells and stepped lightly off the train.

Then, the rhythmic _chu-chug, chu-chug _began again, and everyone tried to pretend that nothing of consequence had happened. The animal's lips were sealed, or if not lips, beaks. Bunnie realised that Gulliver hadn't spoken for a while, and hadn't even responded to the offering of a cup of hot chocolate.

"Hey Gulliver? Are you ok?" Bunnie asked, nudging his wing carefully.

"Hm?" Gulliver grunted drowsily. "I'm fine, fine. Just a little tired." The albatross yawned, his beak gaping. "When are we making our stop, anyway?"

Bunnie pondered on this for a moment. That was a big question, really. Where _were _they going, anyway?

"Wherever, I guess. A town that sounds interesting."

Then, porter's voice fuzzed over the speaker in the corner of the carriage.

"Now arriving at Leekenton. Leekenton! Eek eek!" Bunnie winced at the sound of his screechy, nail-on-the-chalkboard pitch.

"How about we go to Leekenton? That sounds…interesting," Gulliver suggested, heading for the open doors. Bunnie swallowed the dryness in her mouth nervously. This was a humongous step, just springing off the train and embracing a strange, unfamiliar town as your new home. But Gulliver was already admiring whatever was out there, and it seemed like Bunnie had to follow. With a shake of her head and a frown, the petite animal hopped out of the vehicle with a small wave, trying to ignore her past friends. She would never see them again, would she?

Bunnie gasped in surprise. She wasn't looking at a quaint, quiet little village, nesting among some cliffs and trees. It was a huge, bustling city, crammed full of animals tall and short, thin and fat, dull and exuberant. She tried to speak, but found her mouth was devoid of words.

"Hey, Bunnie?" Gulliver hissed, elbowing her in the ribs. "This is a CITY. Not your average little town…" Bunnie gulped, wringing her paws anxiously.

"Don't you think I know that?" she whispered, a bead of sweat trailing down her forehead. She snapped her head around, taking in the sights of rushing figures, a smell of cappuccinos and cologne filling the air. Now that Bunnie thought about it, her stomach was grumbling and lashing out in protest. It wasn't like the beverage she'd drunk earlier had provided _food._

"If you're hungry, then I'm pretty sure there's a coffee shop up ahead," Gulliver mentioned, motioning towards a sweet looking café, its doors wide open, welcoming in customers. It wasn't The Roost, but it would be good enough.

Strangely, despite it being the city, there was barely anyone inside the shop. Aside from a bedraggled human, a robotic frog and a bespectacled, blue duck the place was as empty as Bunnie's own stomach. She was glad that she had remembered to bring her money. It was as much as her pockets could strain to carry, although she had an emergency stash in the bank if she needed it.

Bunnie and Gulliver each took a seat quietly, the female of the two flinching at the scraping, scratching noise the chair made as it dragged on the floor. Urgently, she buried her head in the menu, blindly reading all of the text printed out on the card. A toffee coloured hamster timidly approached their table, clutching a notepad in her tiny claws. Her nose twitched rapidly, eyes blinking.

"E-excuse me, sir and madam?" she began, a prominent quaver in her voice. Bunnie snapped her head up to face the animal speaking to her. The waitress squeaked gently, taking a few surprised steps backwards.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Bunnie apologised, folding her menu back up having decided what she wanted to order.

"I-It's not your fault." There was an audible swallowing from the nerve-wracked rodent. "What would you like to order?"

A few minutes later, Bunnie was sipping a cup of milky Blue Mountain brew and dreamily nibbling a cupcake. Her attention was wandering over to other subjects. Where was she going to live? _Would _there be anywhere to live? She gave a distant sigh.

"Bunnie? Bunnie!" Gulliver shook her arm, alerting her instantly. "We should go, we need to find a place to stay, or at least for the night."

"Right," Bunnie agreed, and, in a trance like state, she paid for the meal and stumbled out of the shop. Her brain was still whirring away furiously. Suddenly, as she was wandering along, a kitsune crashed into her face and Bunnie fell to the ground. A few tears leaked from her eyes and down her cheeks, her bloody knees blurring with moisture.

"Ah! Excuse my clumsiness; let me help you up, ma'am." The offender's tone sounded embarrassed and genuinely sorry. Bunnie swallowed and sniffed loudly and purposefully. She lifted her head slowly to be met with Redd's pointed, smiling face.

"Oh! I didn't know I had made you cry! My condolences."

"It's not that," Bunnie whimpered, cradling her knees. She was shocked that no one had paid any attention to the sobbing girl in the middle of the street. "I don't have anywhere to live."

"Ah, I see. And I suppose you don't have enough to pay for one of Nook's houses, hm?" Redd's eyes cast away from Bunnie. "The cheating, lying cheapskate." It wasn't a secret that Redd hated his fat, smug business rival.

"What?" Bunnie frowned, glancing at Redd's scowl.

"Nothing, nothing," Redd lied, twiddling his thumbs behind his tattered apron. "I might just have the solution to this predicament though, if you will follow me!"

Bunnie struggled to stand up, her hands resting lightly on her grazed, stinging kneecaps. "Gulliver, aren't you coming?" she asked, staring at the reluctant albatross. He had remained silent and wary throughout Redd and Bunnie's exchange.

"I don't know Bunnie," Gulliver muttered uneasily, a queasy sensation squeezing his guts. "This guy seems kind of…shady. Believe me, I would know, I've seen the slyest animals around."

"Fine, but I'm going." Bunnie began to march adamantly after Redd, who was vanishing into the dismal gloom of a narrow alleyway.

"Bunnie, wait!" Gulliver ran after himself, cursing in the language of the sea under his breath at his own stupidity and soft heart.


	3. Chapter 3

Bunnie trotted after Redd eagerly, glad that someone was finally acknowledging her and Gulliver. He led them behind a humongous block of flats, towering over their heads. It didn't smell like the best thing in the world back here, but it was ok. Bunnie could bear it, if it meant getting a place to live.

The kitsune eyed Bunnie furtively. He needed to appear kindly if he wanted to pull this off and make a profit. "This is my…partner is business, Fists," Redd explained, gesturing towards a burly figure stumbling towards them in the darkness.

Bunnie felt cold and hot at the same time, her forehead moist with sweat. She was beginning to become terrified of this whole situation.

"Stay close to me, Bunnie," Gulliver whispered, grabbing her wrist urgently and drawing her closer.

"Ow, geddoff!" Bunnie muttered, pulling away. She rubbed her arm angrily, glaring at Gulliver, who sighed wearily and gave up. The silhouette's face became clearer and more distinguished as he came into a sliver of light streaming across the floor.

"Good day," he greeted in a low, ominous tone. Fists was barely audible due to his scarily deep and rumbling voice.

"Good day to you, sir," Bunnie chirped naively, as politely as she could through her fear of this muscle-bound stranger.

Redd leant over as discreetly as possible to Fists, muttering in his ear. "You better stick to the deal. Half of the money."

"I've got a nice little apartment you two could share," Fists offered, splaying his huge, meaty hands. They were calloused and covered in nicks and scars. "It's only 100,000 per month, and as long as you can make that amount in time, you can keep it for as long as you want."

Bunnie's heart plummeted into her stomach, her mouth puckering at the edges. She had money, but not nearly enough to cover it for enough time to get her own house, to get around to new places. "Don't worry," Gulliver comforted her. "I've got loads of money stuffed in the Bellpoint."

"Thanks," Bunnie uttered back, keeping her eyes fixed on Fists. She trusted him less and less. It was a better deal than buying a house from Tom Nook, right? He charged millions of bells, and she didn't even have to stay here forever, right…? Bunnie's mouth ran as dry as cardboard. "I-We'll take it," Bunnie rasped, surprised at how old and worn her voice sounded. It was a thing anxiety did to her.

"Deal!" Redd and Fists chuckled cheerily enough in unison, though as the kitsune turned he glared maliciously at Fists and hissed another warning about money. Fists smiled through the grim gleam of his eyes and began to tramp through the littered streets that were wired behind all of the flats and houses. Bunnie picked up the hem of her shirt in disgust. She wouldn't've been surprised if a hoard of cockroaches had swarmed over her feet.

Luckily though, there was no such dilemma, though Gulliver had begun convulsing from when his webbed foot had landed straight in a half-eaten carton of festering takeaway. They eventauly reached a particularly crummy, dank building, droplets of dirty rain sliding down the crackling cement and bricks. Fists pulled a key from his greying shirt and unlocked the door with a creaking _click! _The wood was bloated with rain water so it took a few pushes and almighty heaves to get it to force open.

Bunnie attempted to stay positive and as optimistic as always, but her face fell for the 1ooth time that day as she saw what she was living in. It was the revolting smell that hit her first; a mix of mildew, over ripe, expensive cheeses and plain, disgusting dirt almost bowled her over. Bunnie tried not to retch as they all took a step inside. Gulliver's face had started to turn a pasty green as well, his beak wrinkling in shocked queasiness.

Fists confidently stamped upstairs, his feet making the rotting banister tremble. There were a few muffled coughs heard from a nearby room, smothered quickly with some sort of material. Bunnie swallowed, paling rapidly. _Oh God, _she thought, her body freezing in place until Gulliver gently prompted her to start following Fists.

The room they had gotten wasn't actually terrible. It was cramped, slightly damp and had an unpleasant smell to it, but it could've been worse. There was a working fridge, a leaky sink and even a tiny television, broadcasting the news. Bunnie flicked the remotes off switch and sank into the dingy cream couch. _Well, at least we've got furniture, _Bunnie noted, trying to make the best of things. It looked like they were going to have to sleep on the sofa, unless the floor was an option.

"I'll leave you two to settle in," Fists announced, clapping his paws together and breaking Bunnie's endless train of thoughts. "I'll be expecting pay by the end of the month. 'Till then, ta ta!"

Fists left the room, slamming the door on his way. Whether this was intentional or not, Bunnie didn't know, but it told her that Fists had a massive amount of power and strength in those bulging, muscle woven arms. Gulliver looked up at the ceiling blankly, his eyes clouding over, the sparkling blue seeming to become duller and more like a dead husk. "So…what do we do know?" he sighed.

Bunnie slumped to the floor. "Stock up on food, but only get a little. Just the things we really need. Tomorrow, we should go job-hunting. We're gonna need to keep this place for as long as possible." She picked at the wallpaper absentmindedly. "Plus, we should get some paint to brighten the walls up!"

"Can we just rest first? Look, it's already becoming night and I don't need to eat," Gulliver whined, slithering onto the couch and groaning exaggeratedly. Bunnie rolled her eyes but gave in.

Gulliver rummaged around in the cupboards. Nearly every single one was barren of anything, but one had a thin, flimsy sheet that would probably cover both of them for the night. It would be awkward, being huddled so close together, but it would provide some warmth at least. It was frosty in that flat!

Bunnie lay the blanket over the sofa and bundled herself up in it, hugging the material to her face. Gulliver swept some up for himself and gave a half-hearted yawn.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry for the uninteresting chapter, it's kind of a fill in. **

Bunnie stretched, wiggled and yawned, showing off her stubby teeth. Ugh, she hated mornings. Soon enough though, her usual spritely ways took hold of her and the childish person inside of her was bounding around the flat, ready for a new day.

"Gulliver…" Bunnie cooed gently, prodding him with her finger. "Gulliver…?"

A short, loud noise erupted from underneath the blanket where the albatross was hiding. Gulliver batted it away and squinted up at Bunnie. "Where are we, captain?" he asked groggily, brushing the sleep dust from his eyes.

"Oh Gulliver!" Bunnie squeaked, digging him in the arm playfully. She smirked. "We're not at sea, silly!"

"Ah, right. Bunnie. What do we have today?"

"Well…" Bunnie began rocking back and forth on the arm off the couch. "I was thinking some food and clothes shopping. To make you look more normal of course, tee-hee!" Bunnie paused to giggle at her own joke. "Then we could see if there are any jobs going spare!"

"I don't…want to work…" Gulliver moaned.

"I'm going to make pancakes if we go shopping," Bunnie added, going to the tiny bathroom to wash.

"FINE! I'll come then. Just give me a second!"

Half an hour later, Bunnie and Gulliver were trudging around in the slippery wet plaza. Bunnie had wisely brought an umbrella with her and popped it up in an instant. She shivered, rubbing her arms furiously for warmth.

Luckily, one shop was open, and it just so happened to be a store with food in it. Bunnie grinned, pleased with the result and walked in without a care.

A moody human was leaning on the counter, their glasses lopsided on their face. Their badge said "James." Gulliver picked up a few oranges and tossed them into the basket, then choosing an array of colourful fruits.

"Greedy thing," Bunnie muttered, picking up a packet of pancake mix and staring at the instructions. The simple thought of a stack of doughy, buttery pancakes was enough to make her stomach growl.

She purchased the mix, threw it in a plastic bag and strode out the door, bringing her umbrella out again. Gulliver pursued, clutching an arm full of fruits. Bunnie rolled her eyes.

"Idiot!" she scolded him, thrusting the bag forwards. "Put them in here. You baka!"

"Bunnie, your inner otaku is showing," Gulliver pointed out, grabbing the bag from her.

"Is it?" Bunnie asked. "I didn't notice."

Once back at the apartment, Bunnie whipped up a batch of certifiably delicious pancakes.

"Not bad Bunnie," Gulliver commented through a mouthful as he masticated his food noisily.

"Gross." She turned her head away in disgust. "Thanks though. My gramma taught me how to cook."

The two finished up and pulled out a newspaper together. "Mhm…there are a lot of jobs here…" Bunnie muttered, making various mental notes of what would be a good occupation.

"Hey, looky here. They want someone to help make coffees and stuff and do cleaning at the hairdresser's. I think I'd be pretty good at that!" Bunnie exclaimed, stabbing a particular blue ad on the page.

"Oh. And they want someone to help with cooking at that coffee shop we went to. Uh…Toffee's Coffee or something?" Gulliver mentioned.

"Oh yeah! Ok. I'm going to the hairdresser's, and you can go to the café. Best of luck!" Bunnie punched him on the shoulder lightly and skipped out of the door, swinging her arms sweetly.

The hairdresser's wasn't miles away, thankfully, and before Bunnie knew it she was pushing open the door to the place. A pink poodle with a humongous puffy hairstyle was working a machine to change a client's look. A snooty human was lying back languidly on a chair. She had a sneer for no apparent reason on her face.

"Hey there!" the dog greeted, leaving the contraption to work its magic for a minute; she had a thick accent that Bunnie couldn't quite place. "What can I do for ya, sugar?"

"I came about the ad you left in the newspaper." Bunnie tried to come off as a formal, professional animal, but her mouth melted away into a friendly grin.

"Oh, that's superb hun! I'm Harriet. Who are you, sweetie?" Harriet stooped down for a moment to take the machine off her customer. It sprang off her head and there was a complicated twirl on her head held high with some sort of product. The human paid silently without a word of gratitude and left the shop.

Harriet shook her head and sighed heavily. "Some people…" she muttered.

"I'm Bunnie," Bunnie cut in, her hands behind her back. She felt shy, as usual in a stranger's presence. She was anxious too, her stomach balling up and aching.

"Brilliant. That's a great name," Harriet complimented. "Now, hun, I was thinking 1,500 bells per hour. You could work between 9 and 5?"

"That's wonderful!" Bunnie chirped, clasping her stubby paws together. Her eyes lit up and sparkled.

"I'm glad to know it works for you too." Harriet handed her a broom. "Now…there is some left over fur from a cut I was doing on Biskit over there…" Harriet gestured towards a pile of mess on the tiles. Obligingly, Bunnie began sweeping and chucking it into the bin.

"Ah, yes, yes! You'll do perfectly in this job, dear."

Bunnie smirked proudly; pleased she had earned a job. She worked diligently for a few more hours until the clock ticked to five.

"Good work sweetie. Do you want the money directly or put in your bellpoint?"

"Now good, thanks Harriet!" Bunnie gratefully collected her money and dashed home, humming joyfully to herself. She burst through the door and waved to Gulliver who was slouched on the sofa, eyelids drooping.

"Hey there Gulliver!" Bunnie sang, jingling her sack of bells.

"Hey Bunnie," Gulliver yawned listlessly, head nodding.

"You get the job?"

"Yep, but it's more tiring than you would think," he admitted.

"Aw. Poor you. I'm sure after all that cooking you just want something cooked for you, right?" Bunnie patted Gulliver's head in a weirdly motherly way.

"Bunnie, you sound like you're my wife."

"Shut it," Bunnie deadpanned, slamming her fist on Gulliver's wing, who then choked on his own pain. Bunnie simpered cutely and got to work on her cooking.


End file.
